The Man behind the Mask
by HyperCosmo
Summary: My interpretation of an unseen scene from TDKR. Bruce asks Selena to take Batman to Bane but we never see Catwoman approach Bane to tell him this. This is how I feel things would have gone down when Selena went to tell Bane the latest goss.


**A.N: I'm in the middle of writing the next chapter for "Harlequin-aid" but I was daydreaming over TDR in lecture last week. I started to wonder how Catwoman went about telling Bane that Batman wanted to meet up with him that night so I decided to write that unseen scene. It is very short but Bane doesn't fuck about. lol A couple of years ago, if you told me I'd be writing a story with Bane in it, I wouldn't have believed you. Tom Hardy has given me a whole new prospective of Bane and I've learnt to appreciate just how much of a unique character (comic Bane and NolanVerse) Bane really is.  
****I hope you enjoy and reviews are always appreciated.**

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Selena Kyle tried to keep her breathing slow and steady despite her rapid heart rate. She didn't normally feel fear quite like this. With her legs feeling a little bit like jelly, she kept one sweaty hand on her hip and let the other one swing at her side as she walked. Her latex suit hugged and complimented her slim, toned physique. It emphasised every curve and dip in her figure which she normally held with pride and grace. However on this particular occasion, she found it difficult to hold her usual confident posture. Not even that gun barrel pressing into the small of her back scared her as much as the man who expected her. Thugs with guns proved many times to be no issue to the femme fatale, but one wrong move in the presence of the masked mercenary, she may as well just shoot herself.

"Keep it going, sweetheart," One of the two thugs would often growl. Selena, being unfamiliar with the maze of tunnels that made up Gotham's sewer, disgruntledly did what she was told. She needed the guidance as hostile as it was.  
The three rounded a corner and continued down a darker tunnel towards a glowing dead end. Deep, low breaths like someone breathing into an oxygen mask echoed off the walls. Selena's heart thudded against her rib cage as they drew closer and closer to a very large, muscular figure in the dim light.

Bane was sitting with his back turned, leaning over some crates. Beside him was a giant gas cylinder with Cyclopropane written in a large, bold font across the top. The mask attached to the tank was in Bane's hand, his other occupied with a spoon and large bowl of soup in front of him.

Catwoman felt slightly disturbed. She always considered Bane to be a monster, rather than another human being. So this is how monsters eat…

'I watched you flee and now you return?' Bane's voice was raspy without the mask.

'I….I have come to tell you that Bruce Wayne knows the cause of his bankruptcy.' She gripped her hands together. 'He's called upon a powerful friend who wishes to speak with you tonight.' she finished, uneasily. Much to her discomfort, Bane seemed amused.

'Ah yes, The Bat-man. A powerful friend indeed.' He inhaled into his mask and continued. 'I am still uncertain of your intentions, Miss Kyle. Weren't you supposed to…retire?'

'I was chasing the impossible. Daggett is a fraud.' Selena muttered.

'Pity,' Bane replied, a smile in his voice. 'Although…he will no longer be a problem, I assure you.'

There was silence. Bane held the mask to his face, breathing deeply. Selena fidgeted uncomfortably. She was about to speak when Bane cut her off.

'Bring him to me tonight and I will let you live,' Bane began.

'Okay.' Selena whispered.

'If you help him to escape, you will die.'

Selena's heart jumped into her throat. 'You...you can't kill him' She choked.

The escorting thugs and Selena jumped as Bane began to rise. He grabbed the handle of the tank and spun it around with him. He kept the mask against his face and slowly walked towards Selena, wheeling the tank behind him. Selena stood her ground, her hands clenched tightly into fists.

Bane inhaled deeply as he got to her and removed the mask. Selena involuntarily stopped breathing. She was possibly one of the only people to see Bane's face in years. In his earlier days, his face would have been gentle. He probably would have been rather handsome, but now his face was a portrait of torment. His nose was badly disfigured. Broken veins trailed from under his nostrils, a little across cheeks and down to his top lip. His lips were horribly scarred, broken and pale. Selena stared into the soul of the monster standing in front of her. She could tell from the look in his eyes that he was in excruciating pain. She flinched as he reached out to her and took her petite chin into his gigantic hand.

'You will do it…' He ran his thumb over her bottom lip. 'Or we'll find out together if kitty really has 9 lives.


End file.
